Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Boryeong and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,222 a month against $1,491 in Boryeong, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 less a year. The total is higher in Boryeong despite lower rent and utilities.

72

Cost of Living Index in Boryeong
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Boryeong Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Boryeong

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,491

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,222

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Boryeong and in Shanghai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Boryeong and in Shanghai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,491 in Boryeong versus $1,222 in Shanghai.

Boryeong $1,491
Shanghai $1,222

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,407 in Boryeong versus $1,971 in Shanghai.

Boryeong $2,407
Shanghai $1,971

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,324 in Boryeong versus $2,720 in Shanghai.

Boryeong $3,324
Shanghai $2,720

Living in Boryeong is roughly 22% more expensive than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Boryeong is 10% above, Shanghai is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.93 ₩11.8K

$4.53 ¥30.16

97.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 ₩90.3K

$30.16 ¥201

125.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.32 ₩9,710

$5.11 ¥34.09

43.25%

Cappuccino

$4.08 ₩5,408

$3.41 ¥22.74

19.65%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ₩2,071

$0.58 ¥3.86

168.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 ₩990

$0.35 ¥2.36

114.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.77 ₩5,002

$1.23 ¥8.23

206.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.85 ₩7,768

$2.31 ¥15.40

153.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.12 ₩2,812

$1.88 ¥12.54

12.77%

White Bread (500g)

$3.15 ₩4,178

$1.94 ¥12.90

62.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.19 ₩5,556

$0.98 ¥6.53

327.55%

Eggs

$3.53 ₩4,678

$1.70 ¥11.32

107.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.85 ₩23.7K

$17.02 ¥113

4.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 ₩14.1K

$3.22 ¥21.45

230.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.69 ₩35.4K

$12.93 ¥86.2

106.42%

Apples (1kg)

$7.90 ₩10.5K

$2.15 ¥14.33

267.44%

Banana (1kg)

$3.38 ₩4,491

$1.73 ¥11.50

95.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.76 ₩7,643

$2.03 ¥13.53

183.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.16 ₩8,172

$1.73 ¥11.56

256.07%

Potato (1kg)

$3.68 ₩4,887

$0.83 ¥5.52

343.37%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 ₩3,478

$0.92 ¥6.14

184.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.92 ₩3,880

$0.67 ¥4.49

335.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 ₩1,514

$0.59 ¥3.93

93.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.48 ₩4,616

$3.77 ¥25.14

-7.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.49 ₩24.5K

$11.03 ¥73.5

67.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,024

$0.90 ¥6.01

153.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 ₩4,337

$1.60 ¥10.69

104.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.16 ₩1,540

$0.57 ¥3.81

103.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.62 ¥197

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.65 ₩4,841

$2.14 ¥14.27

70.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₩853

$0.47 ¥3.11

36.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.75 ₩11.6K

$8.74 ¥58.3

0.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₩1,929

$1.34 ¥8.95

8.21%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$29.2K ₩38.7M

$19.3K ¥128.3K

51.64%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$28.5K ₩37.9M

$18.3K ¥121.8K

56.18%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$212 ₩281.9K

$58.9 ¥393

260.66%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$35.99 ₩47.8K

$7.90 ¥52.6

355.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.61 ₩27.3K

$10.60 ¥70.7

94.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.2 ₩72.0K

$64.8 ¥432

-16.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.07 ₩18.7K

$17.47 ¥116

-19.46%

Cinema Ticket

$11.14 ₩14.8K

$9.06 ¥60.4

22.96%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$379 ₩503.3K

$1,587 ¥10.6K

-76.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ₩29.8M

$28.2K ¥188.2K

-20.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 ₩77.7K

$54.6 ¥364

7.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.86 ₩43.6K

$37.21 ¥248

-11.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.3 ₩92.0K

$74.6 ¥497

-7.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.1 ₩111.5K

$106 ¥708

-20.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$489 ₩648.4K

$1,026 ¥6,837

-52.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 ₩479.2K

$559 ¥3,728

-35.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 ₩1.6M

$2,618 ¥17.5K

-54.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$758 ₩1.0M

$1,191 ¥7,939

-36.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,113 ₩9.4M

$13.4K ¥89.1K

-46.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,616 ₩7.5M

$6,527 ¥43.5K

-13.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,484 ₩2.0M

$1,712 ¥11.4K

-13.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

3.36

21.43%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Boryeong: October 24, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Boryeong

$481 32.2%

Shanghai

$237 19.4% 50.8% $244

Accommodation & Living

Boryeong

$361 24.2%

Shanghai

$559 45.8% 54.9% $198

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Boryeong

$269 18%

Shanghai

$77 6.3% 71.2% $192

Eating Out

Boryeong

$182 12.2%

Shanghai

$107 8.8% 41.2% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Boryeong

$110 7.4%

Shanghai

$123 10% 11.4% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Boryeong

$77 5.1%

Shanghai

$83 6.8% 8.3% $6.4

Getting Around

Boryeong

$12 * 0.8%

Shanghai

$36 3% 216% $25

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $489 in Boryeong and $1,026 in Shanghai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shanghai pays 15% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68 in Boryeong vs $30 in Shanghai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $481 vs $237 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Boryeong

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

20:52 8:52 PM

19:52 7:52 PM

1 h behind Boryeong

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

103,620

24,870,895

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.54 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.77 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,327 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.54 USD). 1 EUR = 1,477 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.77 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.67 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

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Boryeong Shanghai 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Boryeong
Shanghai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Boryeong vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Boryeong and Shanghai differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($1,491 vs $1,222 including rent). Shanghai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 13% lower in Boryeong. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $489 in Boryeong versus $1,026 in Shanghai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $379 in Boryeong versus $1,587 in Shanghai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Shanghai – a meal for two runs $30 versus $68 in Boryeong. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Shanghai gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.